US missionary stabbed to death in Haiti

Published: May 17, 2014 6:23AM

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — An American missionary who came to Haiti in the wake of the January 2010 earthquake has been stabbed to death in the capital of the impoverished Caribbean country, police and friends said Friday.

George Knoop, an elder with the Quisqueya Chapel in Haiti, was attacked inside his home in the Delmas section of the capital on Tuesday afternoon, said friend and fellow church member Zach Segaar-King.

Knoop managed to call friends for help and told them he recognized his assailant before he died, Segaar-King said.

A computer was apparently stolen during the attack but it does not appear that robbery was the motive and the slain missionary likely knew his assailant through his ministry efforts in the country, he said.

Police investigator Jean-Faustin Solomon said the motive for the slaying is unknown and no suspects have been arrested. Authorities recovered the knife that was apparently used in the attack at the man's home, which he shared with two roommates who were away at the time.

The victim, who was in 70s, also worked in Haiti as a volunteer for U.S.-based Missionary Flights International. Larry Campbell, vice president of operations for the organization, said Knoop had been a teacher in the Chicago area who felt called by God to work in Haiti after attending a church presentation about the devastating January 2010 earthquake.

"He felt that God wanted him to work there, where people had need," Campbell said. "And he went down and tried to see what he could do."

A memorial for him was held at his church in Haiti on Wednesday by his shocked friends and fellow church members. "It's a small community and we're all pretty devastated," Segaar-King said.